Expert: Long Island Gardener - 2/28/2007

Question
hi again, yes i pre-chilled them for over a month, and i believe they were chilled before purchase.
so too much sun is more of a problem than heavy rain? if we hit a freak hot spell, should i keep them from roasting?  thanks!!!
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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
hi there,
i'm in the sf bay area (94610) and earlier this month i planted a few hundred tulip bulbs in pots for a friend's wedding at the end of april. i have them on concrete in the backyard to keep weeds at bay and to prevent them from staying too saturated. they are as well drained as they can be ( i mixed in a good amount of sand into each pot) given that it's been raining somethin fierce for the last few days. it's "supposed" to stop raining cats and dogs by the weekend, but it will undoubtedly pick up again sometime in the near future.

my concern is that the heavy, prolonged rain period may delay blooming, and/or that they may not be happy with such large amounts of water. should i be concerned? i've started covering them with a tarp at night because it rains much more heavily then. i would so appreciate any suggestions you have to improve the likelihood of successful blooming.

thanks,
a little soaked in oakland
-----Answer-----
The worst case scenario here, Vicki, would be that they "blasted" from heat.  The temperature should trigger growth, and the sun that they get - not the rain - will determine whether they bloom on schedule or not.

Were these bulbs pre-chilled?  By you or someone else?

Remember, April Showers are a fact of life, at least up here in the Northeast, and they don't delay blooming.  If anything, they would promote it.  Your bulbs are well drained - clearly you realize the importance of that.  It is the heat that I'm concerned about.  Assuming they were prechilled.

rsvp!

Answer
Thanks for your quick followup - sorry to be so unclear about this, I am a little too fast sometimes, I get carried away.

Sun is GREAT!

Rain is GREAT!

Drainage is GREAT!

Heat - VERY VERY BAD.  I don't know where you will find a refrigerator to chill those plants if it gets into the 80s, but that's going to be the biggest threat, in my honest opinion.

You know, people should just never plan outdoor weddings or grow their own bulbs for them.  I am so glad not to be in your shoes - but boy do I hope it works for you, because if it does, what a spectacular setting you will have.

Please let me know how things work out.

Think snow.

Thanks for writing.